Tensions Increase Over Taiwan

 12/8/25 BBC:

Japan has protested after Chinese fighter jets locked radars on Japanese aircraft as tensions between the two nations worsened.

Locking radar onto an aircraft is considered a threat because it can signal a potential attack. Japan said there were two such incidents Saturday off its southern Okinawa islands.

Japan said it scrambled fighter jets in response to the Chinese J-15 fighter jets, while Beijing accused Tokyo of "harassing" its forces during a training exercise. No injuries or damage were reported.

Diplomatic ties between Japan and China have spiralled since last month, after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested that Tokyo could take military action if Beijing attacked Taiwan.

Beijing views self-governed Taiwan as part of its territory and has not ruled out the use of force to "reunite" with it.

Both sides have since engaged in increasingly hostile rhetoric towards each other, with the widening rift affecting daily life for citizens in both countries.

I keep hoping Xi thinks before acting stupid.  The U.S. and its allies Singapore, Phillipines, Australia, and Vietnam could interdict Chinese exports and perhaps more critically oil imports through the Straits of Malacca and South China Sea.  Invasion of Taiwan would ratchet up existing G7 anger at Chinese trade policy to a level from which China might not recover for years. I also think Chinese military might may turn out to be at Russian levels of corruption and incompetence.  The energy Xi has put into prosecuting military corruption at the general officer level hints that this problem may be present at lower ranks as well. If you know (or suspect) your superiors are dirty, why not get a piece of the pie for yourself?